Tumbling machine



Oct. 17, 1944. J. E. VEVTORINO TUMBLING MACHIN E Filed June 26, 1959 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Inventor win I Viarz n6 By W and ' .4 fiorneys Oct. 17 1944- J. E. VETORINO TUMBLING MACHINE Filed June 26 1939 Sheets-Sheet 2 In venior Jirl. l ezvrz no and . 1 iiomeys Oct. l7, 1944. J. E. VETORINO 2,360,377

TUMBLING MACHINE Filed June 26, 1939 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 In ventor I. 7/ Jim/E V'orz'na A tiomcui Patented Oct. 17, 1944 TUMBLING MACHINE John E. Vetorino, Fairhaven, Mass, assignor to Continental Machinery 00., Inc., New Bedford, Mass., a corporation of Massachusetts Application June 26, 1939, Serial No. 281,255

9 Claims.

The present invention relates to tumbling machines, and more particularly to machines for tumbling hides, skins, fabrics and the like during degreasing, washing or otherwise treating the same.

A type of machine in common use, which has found application both in the laundry and the hide-treating industry, comprises an inner perforated drum or cylinder the opposite flat end walls of which are provided with two alined shafts, each journaled in a separate hearing. The drum is swung back and forth about these hearings in a stationary cylinder or casing that contains the liquid with which to treat the hides or laundry in the inner cylinder. This liquid, which enters the inner cylinder through its perforations, may be for the purpose of degreasing the hides or skins or washing the laundry contained therein. The skins, laundry and the like are introduced into the inner drum or cylinder through an opening in the cylindrical Wall of the inner cylinder, which opening is closed, during the swinging operation of the inner cylinder,

by a door. The contents of the inner cylinder, after treatment, are removed through the same opening.

The outer cylinder or casing is also provided with an opening. It is through both these openings, when" alined, that the goods may be introduced into the inner cylinder or removed therefrom.- In order that the opening of the outer casing may be above the level of the liquid contained therein, it is positioned at or near the top of the machine. This, however, is awkwardand inconvenient for the operator, who must usually 1 get up on a ladder or other perch to reach the openings.

It has accordingly been proposed to position the alined doors at an end wall, instead of at or near the top, of the cylinder. To bring this about, however, it is necessary to do away with one of the previously described two alined endwall shafts, and to rely for support upon the other shaft alone. This, however, introduces new difliculties. arising out of the necessity for supporting the cylinder at one end wall only. The proposals heretofore made for reducing this concept to practice have involved providing an elongated bearing, or a plurality of bearings, for the single remaining end-Wall shaft. For very small machines, this has to some degree, though not completely, solved the problem. For larger machines, however, this solution of the problem has proved to be a complete failure, owing to the unbalance produced in the machine by the over- I inner cylinder also with a bearing or bearings.

As the open-ended Wallis not provided with a shaft, these additional bearings have been rather cumbersome and complex in structure, and they have, furthermore, been positioned inside the liquid in the outer cylinder or casing, which has detracted from the usefulness of the machine.

An object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved machine of the abovedescribed character the cylinders of which are open-ended.

With this end in view, a feature of the invention contemplates counterw'eighting the inner cylinder to remove its unbalance. According to "the specific embodiment of the invention that is illustrated and described herein, two cylinders are mounted upon the respective ends of an intermediately journaled shaft, each cylinder servingv as a counterweight for the other.

An important object of the invention is to provide simple and efilcient arrangements of the above-described character whereby the capacity of the washing machine is greatly increased while the labor of the attendants'is reduced.

Other important objects and advantages of my invention will be apparent from a reading of the following description taken in connection with the drawings, wherein for purposes of illustration I have shown preferred embodiments of my invention.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a general side or end elevation of a washing machine in accordance with the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a sectional elevational view substantially upon the line 2-2 of Fig. 1, looking in the direction pf the arrows, partly broken away, and showing interior mechanism supporting and operating the dual washing cylinders;

Fig. 3 is a lonigtudinal section, upon a larger scale, showing details of construction of the means for supporting one of the washing cylinders on its shaft Fig. 4 is a similar section, showing structural details of one of the washing-cylinder shaft-supporting carrying sections;

Fig. 5 is a similar section, showing construction details of the lower part of the middle of the casing and support of the washing machine; and

Fig. 6 is a similar section, showing construcshaft 29, in the bearing 32.

I split hubs 28.

tion details of the discharge opening and the door of one of the washing cylinders.

The preferred machine is shown provided with an upright outer closed, stationary, generally cylindrical, casing having a centrally disposed section I9, bounded by oppositely disposed end walls I6 and I1. Axially alined cylindrical end-section chambers 5 and 6 are disposed at the respec- ,tive ends of the centrally disposed section, the

end-section chamber 6 beyond the wall I6 and the end-section chamber 5 beyond the wall ll.

The walls I6 and II are respectively secured to the end sections 6 and 5. Circular or cylindrical angle-iron reinforcing rings or bands 8 and 9, L-shaped in cross section, are welded throughout to the respective walls I6 and I! of the end sections 5 and 6, in axially alined relation thereto.

The centrally disposed section II) is illustrated as further provided with a lower side-segment portion I2, of rectangular cross-section, that is secured, in any desired way, as by welding, to a base I5 by which the centrally disposed section I is thus directly supported. The side segment I2 is secured, as hereinafter more fully described, to members I2 which, in turn,'support the side walls I6 and IT. The end sections 5 and 6 are supported directly by portions I4 and I3, respec tively, that slantingly project outwardly up from the base I5.

The wall I6 is shown carrying a bearing 3| and the wall IT a. bearing 32. The bearings 3| and 32 are oppositely disposed in the centrally disposed section III coaxially with the cylindrical sections 6, I0 and 5. A shaft 29 is journaled in the bearing 3|, and a shaft 39, alined with the The inner ends of the shafts 29 and 30 are adjacently disposed, as shown more particularly in Fig. 1, and their outer ends project through sealed openings in the walls I6 and I1, respectively, beyond these walls, into the respective end sections 6 and 5.

Inner perforated drums or cylinders l8 and I9 are respectively fixed to the outer ends of the shafts 29 and 30. The cylinder I8 isthus axially journaled to rotate with the shaft 29 in the end section 6, and the cylinder I9 is axially journaled to rotate with the shaft 30 in the end section 5. The cylinders are each provided with an inner end wall 39 and an outer end wall 40. As will be more fully explained hereinafter, the outer ends of the shafts 29 and 39 are fixed to the respective cylinders I8 and. I9 at their inner end walls 39.

I The inner end of the shaft 29 is shown in Fig. 1

A disposed within a split hub 28. The irmer end of the shaft3|l is similarly shown disposed within another split hub 28 that is alined with the firstnamed split hub 28. The alined split hubs are secured together into a unitary hub structure by means of bolts passing through pairs of alined bolt openings, one opening of each pair in each of the split hubs 28. After the alined shafts 29 and 30 have been mounted-in this unitary splithub structure 28, with their ends adjacently disposed, they are securely fastened in any desired manner, as by means of bolts extending through alined bolt openings in the ends of the respective The end walls I6 and I! of the centrally disposed section ID are shown reinforced by means of webs 33 and 34 that respectively radiate from the bearings 3| and 32.

The shafts 29 and 3!] become thus rigidly coupledtogether intermediately between the cylinders I8 and I9 to rotate as a unitary shaft in the bearings 3| and 32, which bearings serve, in

effect, as a single or unitary bearing structure for this unitary shaft 29, 30. The advantage of using two shafts 29 and 3|), instead of only a single shaft, is to facilitate disassembly, for purposes ofrepair. The rotation of the shaft 29, 36 may be effected by means of a driving gear wheel 21 that is fixed to the unitary-hub structure 28 so as to rotate between the bearings 3| and 32. The gear 21 is shown as driven from an electric motor 2 I, mounted upon a non-cylindrical upper portion 20 of the centrally disposed section III. A sprocket chain 23 is trained over a sprocket on the motor shaft in a chain enclosure 22, and also overa sprocket wheel on a drive shaft 24. The shaft 24 is mounted in a bifurcated bracket 25 near the top of the central portion I9 of the machine casing and has fixed thereon a driving pinion 26 which is in mesh with driving gear wheel 21. The gear wheel 2! includes the hub structure 28.

The cylinders I8 and I9 are thus detachably secured together coaxially, in back-to-back spaced-apart relation, so as to rotate about their common horizontally disposed shaft 29, 30, each cylinder being carried by its shaft 29 or 30 at its inner wall 39.

Rotation of the driving gear 21 by the motor 2| is thus communicated, through the unitary shaft 29, 3|), to the inner cylinders I8 and I9, which are thus likewise rotated in unison. The machine is thus in perfect balance, each cylinder I8 or I9 serving as a counterweight for the other. It is not necessary, therefore, to supply the outer end walls 40 of the cylinders I8 and I9 with bearing shafts, or the outer walls of the end sections 5 and 6 with bearings for such shafts, and this even though the cylinders may be of considerable size, say, sufficiently large to carry a load of from seven hundred to a thousand pounds each. It is accordingly possible to-provide these outer walls 40 each with an axially disposed circular opening 4|, and the outer walls of the end sections 5 and 6 each with a concentrically disposed axially alined opening 42. The hides, skins, laundry and the like may be inserted into the respective cylinders I8 and I9, and removed therefrom, through the two pairs of alined openings 42 and 4 I.

Each opening 42 may be closed, during the operation of the machine, by a frusto-conical door 44, hinged at one side at 59, and provided with means 62 for holding it securely in place at its other side. An annular projection in each opening 42 is adapted to engage a compressible ring seal 60 that is disposed in a circular recess in each door 44. 1

In order that the cylinders I8 and I9 may be enabled the better to carry the heavy loads contained therein, without destroying their balance, and without the necessity for employing any additional bearings at the outer ends of thecylinders, it is desirable to reinforce their inner end walls 39. As these end walls 39 are duplicates, it will suffice to describe one only. According to the specific embodiment of the invention that is illustrated and described herein, the respective washing-cylinder shafts that project through the sealed openings in the walls I6 and U have welded thereto, as indicated in Fig. 3 by the numeral 35, a pan-shaped annulus 36 which, in turn, has its free edges welded, as indicated by the numeral 31, to the wall 39. Bracing webs 38 extend along the axially inward wall 39 of the washing cylinder and are connected to the annulus 36, as shown in Figs. 2 and 3, whereby sumcient support of the cylinder on the shaft is obtained to position and operate the cylinder properly in a fully loaded condition.

Circumferentially spaced baffles 45 extend around the drum adjacent its periphery and in equally circumferentially spaced relation. These baffles are U-shaped in cross section, as indicated by dotted lines in Fig. 1, with their radially inward edges radially spaced from the axis of the drum at a distance about equal to half the diameter of the openings 4| and 42. The purpose of these ballies is to overturn and agitate the material being washed during the operation of the machine.

It will be understood that both ofthe washing cylinders may, by conventional means, be provided with simultaneously operating sources of fluid and temperature control. (not shown), so that the batches in both of the cylinders may be similarly conditioned at ,the same time.

Supply doors 46 are provided in the cylindrical sections 6 and 1 of the casing of the machine.

The opposite end walls of the central section of the casing of the machine terminate in channel-shapes 65, which are assembled with vertical flanges 66. The flanges 66 are each positioned between one wall of the shape 65 and a flange 61 of the false bottom 68. The false bottom 68 extends between the walls l6 and IT. A bolt 68 traverses a buttress 70, the elements 61, 66, .65 and an anchor element 10, located in the channel,

except as required by the scope of the subjoined claims.

Having described the invention, what is claimed as new is:

1. A tumbling machine having, in combination, two housings each adapted to contain a fluid and each having an inner wall and an outer wall, the inner walls being oppositely disposed and being provided with oppositely disposed alined bearings, the outer walls being each provided with an opening, a rotatable shaft journaled in the bearings with its ends projecting into the respective housings, means for actuating the shaft, a tumbling cylinder disposed in each housing into which some of the fluid may enter, the cylinders each havin'g an inner end wall and an outer end wall, each outer end wall being provided adjacent to the corresponding housing outer wall with an opening alined with the corresponding housing end-wall opening, the cyl inders being fixed to the respective ends of the shaft at their inner end walls to rotate with the shaft in the respective housings','thereby to tumble the contents of the cylinders in the fluid, and a door for closing each housin end-wall opening .dun'n the tumbling of the said contents,

' each-cylinder being adapted to be loadedwith to lock the parts in assembled condition. The I lower portion of the plate 66 extends into a notch H formed in the upper part of the block 12 alongside of a depending flange 13 on the bottom sec-. tion 14. A bolt 15 traverses the mentioned parts and also both legs of an inverted U-shaped element 16 which has a block 11 between its flanges.

The bolt 15 traverses also the depending flange 18 on the bottom portion 19, and the vertical flange 80 of an angle-iron support 8| which extends across the casing. The block 12 has depending therefrom the angulated plate 82.

Referring in detail to Figs. 2 and 4, showing one of the washing-cylinder shaft-bearing structures, the numeral 83 generally designates an annulus connected to the corresponding one of the walls l6 and I1 and having radially inwardly projecting lugs 84 located axially outwardly 'of companion lugs 85. These lugs 85 are assembled by machine screws or bolts 86. They project from the annulus 81, which comprises the bearing race member 88. The race member 88, in turn, confines the bearing rollers 89 on the companion race member 90. Longitudinal or axial shifting of the members 81, 88, 89 and '90 is prevented by the presence, on the opposite sides thereof, of the retainer rings 9| and 92, which are bolted, as indicated by the numerals 93 and 94, to the annulus 81. The radially inward'edges of the retainers 9| and 92 are grooved and provided with sealing rings 95 and 96, respectively, the ring 95 operating in connection-With the surface 91 of the shaft and the ring 96 being engaged with an enlarged diameter portion 98. The

into the respective housings, means for actuatopenin in the wall I! through which the shaft 30 passes is provided with an annular sealing ring 99, which is grooved'to hold the sealing ring I00 in engagement with the surface of the shaft 30 contents 't'o'be tumbled therein and to be unloaded of the said contents through the opening in its outer end wall and the housing end-wall opening alined therewith.

2.'A tumbling machine having, in combination, two housings each adapted to contain a fluid and each having an inner wall and an outer wall, the inner walls being oppositely disposed and being provided with oppositely disposed alined bearings, the outer walls being each provided with an opening, a rotatable shaft journaled in the bearings with its ends projecting ing the shaft, a tumbling cylinder disposed in each housing into whichsome of the fluid may enter, the cylinders each having an inner end wall and. an outer end wall, each outer-end wall the shaft in the respective housings, thereby to tumble the contents of the cylinders in the fluid, the cylinders being unsupported except for the support provided by the respective ends of the shaft at the inner end walls of the cylinders, whereby each cylinder constitutes a counterweight for the other cylinder, and a door for closing each housing end-wall opening during the tumbling of the said contents, each cylinder being adapted to be loaded with contents to be tumbled therein and to be unloaded of the said contents through the opening in its outer end wall and the housing end-wall opening alined therewith.

3. A tumbling machine havingfin combination, two housings each adapted to contain a fluid and each having an inner wall and an outer wall, the inner walls being oppositely disposed and being provided with oppositely disposed alined bearings, the outer walls being each provided with an opening, a rotatable shaft journa'led in the bearings with its ends projecting into the respective housings, means for actuating the shaft, a tumbling cylinder disposed in each housing into which some of the fluid may enter, the cylinders each having an inner end wall and an outer end wall, each outer end wall being provided adjacent to the corresponding housing outer wall with an opening alined with the corresponding housing end-wall opening, the cylinders being fixed to the respective ends of the shaft at their inner end walls to rotate with the shaft in the respective housings, thereby to tumble the contents of the cylinders in the fluid, the cylinders being unsupported except for the support provided by the respective ends of the shaft at the inner end walls of the cylinders, whereby each cylinder constitutes a counterweight for the other cylinder, the said inner walls being reinforced, and a door for closing each housing end-wall opening during the tumbling of the said contents, each cylinder being adapted to be loaded with contents to be tumbled therein and to be unloaded of the said contents through the opening in its outer end wall and the housing end-wall opening alined therewith.

4. A tumbling machine having, in combination, two housings each adapted to contain a fluid and each having an inner wall and an outer wall, the inner walls being oppositely disposed and being provided with oppositely disposed alined bearings, the outer walls being each provided with an opening, a rotatable shaft journaled in the bearings with its ends projecting into the respective housings, means for actuating the shaft, a tumbling cylinder disposed in each housing into which some of the fluid may enter, the cylinders each having an inner end wall and an outer end wall, each outer end wall being provided adjacent to the corresponding housing outer wall with an opening alined with the corresponding housing end-wall opening, the cylinders being fixed to the respective ends of the shaft at their inner end walls to rotate with the shaft in the respective housings, thereby to tumble the contents of the cylinders in the fluid, the cylinders being unsupported except for the support provided by the respective ends of the shaft at the inner end wall of the cylinders,

whereby each cylinder constitutes a counterweight for the other cylinder, an annulus fixed to each end of the shaft, each annulus having a flange, means for securing the flanges each to the inner wall of one of the cylinders, and a door for closing each housing end-wall opening duringthe tumbling of the said contents, each cylinder being adapted to be loaded with contents to be tumbled therein and to be unloaded of the said contents through-the opening in its outer end wall and the housing end-wall opening alined therewith.

5. A tumbling machine having, in combination, two housings each adapted to contain a fluid and each having an inner wall and an outer wall, the inner walls being oppositely disposed and being provided with oppositely disposed alined bearings, the outer walls being each provided with an opening, a rotatable shaft comprising two axially-alined stub shafts, each journaled in one of the bearings and projecting beyond its respective bearing into one of the housings, means for actuating the shaft, a tumbling cylinder disposed in each housing into which some of the fluid may enter, the cylinders each having an inner end wall and an outer end wall, each outer end wall being provided adjacent to the corresponding housing outer wall with an opening alined with the corresponding housing end-wall opening,'the cylinders being fixed to at their inner end walls to rotate with the shaft in the respective housings, thereby to tumble the contents of the cylinders in the fluid, and a door for closing each housing end-wall opening during the tumbling of the said contents, each cylinder being adapted to be loaded with contents to be tumbled therein and to be unloaded of the said contents through the opening in its outer end wall and the housing end-wall opening alined therewith.

6. A tumbling machine having, in combination, a frame provided with a centrally disposed section bounded by oppositely disposed walls and an end section disposed at each end of the centrally disposed section, one beyond each of the respective walls, the end sections being adapted to contain a fluid and each having an outer end wall provided with an opening, the oppositely disposed walls being provided with alined bearings, a rotatable shaft journaled in the bearings with its end projecting beyond the respective bearings into the respective end sections, means disposed in the centrally disposed section between the bearings for actuating the shaft, a tumbling cylinder disposed in each end section into which some of the fluid may enter, the cylinders each having an inner end wall and an outer end wall, each outer end wall being provided adjacent to the corresponding endsection end wall with an opening alined with the corresponding end-section end-well opening, the cylinders being fixed to the respective ends of the shaft at their inner end walls to rotate with the shaft in the respective end sections, thereby to tumble the contents of the cylinders in the fluid, and a door for closing each end-section end-wall opening during the tumbling of the said contents, each cylinder being adapted to be loaded with contents to be tum-.

bled therein and to be unloaded of the said contents through the opening in its outer end'wall and the end-section end-wall opening alined therewith.

'7. A tumbling'machine having, in combination, a frame provided with a centrally disposed section and an end section disposed at each end of the centrally disposed section, the end sections being adapted to contain a fluid and each having an outer end wall provided with an opening, a bearing disposed in the centrally disposed section, a rotatable shaft journaled in the bearing with its ends projecting beyond the bearing, means supported by the centrally disposed section for rotating the shaft, a tumbling cylinder disposed in each end section into which some of the fluid may enter, the cylinders each having an inner end wall and an outer end wall, each outer end wall being provided adjacent to the corresponding end-section end wall with an opening alined with the corresponding end -section end-wall opening, the cylinders being fixed to the respective ends of the shaft at their inner end walls,to rotate with the shaft in the respective end sections, thereby to tumble the contents of the cylinders in the fluid,.and a door for closing each end-section end-wall opening during the tumbling of the said contents, each cylinder being adapted to be loaded with contents to be tumbled therein and to be unloaded of the said contents through the opening in its outer end wall and the end-section end-wall opening alined therewith.

8. A tumbling machine having, in combination, a casing adapted to contain a fluid, a rotatable shaft, a bearing in which the shaft is journaled and beyond which the ends of the shaft extend, two tumbling cylinders disposed in the casing into which some of -the fluid may enter, the cylinders each having an inner end wall and an outer end wall, each outer end wall being provided with an opening, the cylinders being fixed to the respective ends of the shaft at their inner end walls to rotate with the shaft, and means for actuating the shaft to actuate the cylinders in the casing to tumble the contents of the cylinders in the fluid, each cylinder being adapted to be loaded with contents to be tumbled therein and to be unloaded of the said contents through the opening in its outer end wall.

9. A tumbling machine having, in combination, a casing adapted to contain a fluid, a rotatable shaft, a bearing in which the shaft is journaled and beyond which the ends of the shaft easing into which some of the fluid may enter, the cylinders each having an inner end wall and an outer end wall, each outer end wall being provided with an opening, the cylinders being fixed to the respective ends of the shaft at their inner end walls to rotate with the shaft, the cylinders being unsupported except for the sup port provided by the respective ends of the shaft at the-inner end walls of the cylinders, whereby each cylinder constitutes a counterweight for the other cylinder, and means for actuating the shaft to actuate the cylinders in the casing to tumble the contents of the cylinders in the fluid,

extend, two tumbling cylinders disposed in the each cylinder being adapted to be loaded with contents to be tumbled therein and to be unloaded of the said contents through the opening in its outer end wall.

' JOHN E. VETORINO. 

